Nitin Gadkari says a strong Congress essential to country’s democracy

Gadkari contends that regional parties who are encroaching into the void created by a weakened Congress is not a good sign

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Mumbai: Often known for his candid observations on politics, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari argued that “A strong Congress party was needed to prevent regional parties from capturing the opposition space”. He urged Congressmen to stick to their convictions and remain within their party.  

He said this while speaking at a journalism awards function of a prominent vernacular newspaper in Pune held on late Saturday evening. Ever alert, Gadkari was quick to clarify that he was “not in the race” for the Prime Minister’s post. He said this during a Question & Answer session during the award function. 

Gadkari remarked, “I am a national politician and am not interested in coming to Maharashtra (state politics) at this stage. Once upon a time, I wasn’t particularly interested in going to the Centre, but am happy there now. I am a conviction-oriented politician and not a particularly ambitious one.”

Remarking that a strong opposition was a sine qua non (prerequisite) for democracy, Gadkari said that a weakened Congress was not desirable for democracy as its place would then be taken by regional parties which was not a good sign.

Replying to a query he added, “Atal Bihari Vajpayee had lost the Lok Sabha election (late 1950s) but had still earned (then PM) Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s respect. Hence, in a democracy the opposition’s role is very important. I wish with all my heart that the Congress remains strong. Those in the Congress today must stick to their convictions and remain in the Congress. They must continue to work and not despair of defeat,” said the BJP leader, speaking on the Congress’ rout in the recent assembly elections to five states. 

Gadkari said that one ought not to ‘desert’ one’s ideology or party merely out of electoral despair. He remarked further, “Every party will get its day. The point is to keep working on,” he said. Gadkari further added that the ruling party and the opposition were akin to the two wheels of democracy. 

He recalled how he was once discouraged in the early 1980s from continuing with the BJP by late Congressman from Nagpur, Dr. Shrikant Jichkar, at a time when the saffron party’s fortunes were at an all-time low. 

“Yet, I stuck to my convictions and persevered with the BJP, which saw its fortunes soar under Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s leadership to become the party what it is today,” Gadkari said.   

Gadkari further observed that while there could be differences in thought (between leaders of different political parties), it did not mean they were enemies, while underscoring Maharashtra’s political benign tradition where people managed to get along despite political differences between them. 

His comments come against the backdrop of the bitter disputes between the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress on the one side and the opposition BJP on the other in Maharashtra. The differences have only sharpened following the series of raids on MVA leaders and their kin, including the Enforcement Directorate’s recent raid on Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s brother-in-law. 

Gadkari further remarked, “Maharashtra has preserved this tradition where people of differing ideologies and viewpoints have coexisted… This kind of politics (of malice) is not acceptable to Maharashtra’s political culture. Today, rather than differing viewpoints or ideologies, the problem is of no ideology but rank opportunism.”

He further added the politics of today seems increasingly to be based on convenience rather than conviction.